Running journal, Saturday, 2006-05-06

Running journal, Saturday, 2006-05-06
Resting heart rate: 57 bpm (60 second test)
Day: Saturday
Date: 2006-05-06
Weather: sunny, 3 m/s wind
Temp: 23.3 C (74 F)
Time: 06:34-12:21 (9:24 half-way time)
Terrain: flat, mild hills
Comments: All's well that ends well. 23-mile run today. Woke up around 05:15 and began drinking water, ate a banana, and got down to the pedestrian bridge at 06:30. I distinctly remember thinking "it's frickin' cold." The temp was about 58 at that point with a moderate breeze. I was the third car there today. I felt pretty brain-dead, I'm not used to getting up so early. I started out slow, around 5.0-mph, stopping to drink at each water fountain. With all the water I was drinking I could tell I needed to take a bathroom break, but I figured, maybe I won't have to stop if it gets warm and I begin sweating. That may have worked, but the chill of the morning air kept me dry until about nine miles in. I took two PowerBars this morning, just like my last long run, but this time I figured out that to keep my shorts from falling down I have to clip the GPS unit to both my shorts and undies. So I had no issues with drooping shorts today. I did have an issue with the GPS. Almost immediately, the low-battery indicator appeared on my watch, and the GPS failed around five miles in. To my dismay, my GPS does not work with the rechargable batteries I own, and the only AA I had was a cheap one, which did not last so long. So I ran on how I felt, which ended up being a pretty reliable guide. I needed to feel better at the end than I did last time, so for the first 11.5 miles I went very slow, probably around 4.5-mph. It felt very odd to run for so long and still be saying "good morning" to people as they ran by. Around nine miles out, two women passed me, one dressed all in red, the other with a Jeff Galloway shirt. The latter said to her partner as they approached me, "Look, it's your twin." We laughed and exchanged greetings and they continued on. I could tell they were taking walk breaks too, and the woman with the JG shirt even had a Timex watch on like me, because I heard the distinctive alarm jingle it makes. Fun. I got passed by everyone. A speed-walking woman passed me as I walked, then I passed her, a sort of awkward moment. She then passed me again and I slowed down again. The trail between Watt and Howe is gorgeous. The river is wide and blue, and the trail is shady, straight, and cool. I turned around within sight of Howe Ave. On the return, I could feel fatique starting to set in. For most of the run so far, I had felt pretty brain-dead, not thinking about anything. I attribute that to the morning chill and the conservative (but totally necessary based on what I wanted) pace I was running. As the day warmed, I felt myself heating up, which increased fatigue. I remembered Jeff Galloway mention in his book that if you feel hot, dump water on your head. So I did at the next water fountain. It felt liberating, fantastic, cold, wet, invigorating, and most of all, fun. I began doing this at every water fountain I stopped at, with similar results each time. I stopped for bathroom breaks two more times. Around mile 15, I think from eating some of my second PowerBar, I felt a rush of energy, and at first I started revving up to capitalize on it. Then I remembered it's best to play it safe with energy with so much distance remaining, and I slowed back down again. I felt proud of my ability to recognize and respond positively to this problem. Right after I crossed the bridge at Goethe Park, something clicked in me. I finally understood what Jeff Galloway meant when he said main driving muscles in his book, and I started using them during my running portions. I couldn't believe how great it was to run using those muscles. All this time I have been primarily using my calf muscles to run. Between miles 17-20, I ran like I had just discovered a new reservoir of energy I didn't know I had. And the muscles kept giving and giving. I felt no fatigue, no stiffness, my body relaxed, and I got the part about running tall. This is a major breakthrough for me. Around mile 20, I began realizing I was over-running, and I slowed back down again until mile 22, then with the end in sight and my legs rested I revved up again and finished strong. I finished the last of the second PowerBar and decided to follow Jeff Galloway's advice and walk for one mile before returning home. For about the last three miles, I had also been thinking about JG's advice to immerse my legs as soon as possible after finishing into a ice water bath. The thought of immersing my legs in the ice-cold water of the American River was all I could think about as I walked the half-mile to a beach upstream from the pedestrian bridge. I took off my shoes, and lay down in the water. Ahhhhh, perfect. As I did so, a pair of geese feeding on the shore swam away, but one duck decided to investigate, swimming right up to my feet. It was heading straight for my toes with it's beak, but it pulled back when I told it, "That's my toes." It's the closest I have ever been to a duck. A father and his two daughters pulled up on his bike and trailer and took them down to the shore next to where I sitting in the deliciously cold water. I could tell the father was patient, smart, confident, loving, and compassionate by the way he interacted with his daughters. The duck swam up to the two daughters, looking for food. After my legs became numb, I put my shoes back on and walked back to my car. This was one of my most productive runs yet, and also one of the most enjoyable.
Time: 347 minutes (5:47 minutes), 9.35 minutes/km (15.09 minutes/mile), 6.59 hr marathon pace
Goal Time: 345 minutes (5:15)
Distance: 37.10 km (23 mi) http://www.gmap-pedometer.com/?r=166400
Total Distance For Year: 517.3 km (308.4 mi)
Weight (after run): 77.0 kg (169.785 lbs), 18% body fat
Any irregular feelings, aches, pains, heart rate, and so forth?: left ankle sore at first, then went away, right knee sore, stiff legs, right foot fourth toe's skin has big friction mark on it
Foods eaten today: banana (2), Powerbar (2), Gookinaid drink,